Hell or High Water rodeo raises cash, spirits for flood victims

Val Fortney, Calgary Herald09.20.2013

Cowboys compete in the wild horse race at the Hell or High Water Charity Rodeo presented by Qualico Communities at the Millarville Race Track on Saturday.CaptionCaptionCaptionGavin Young
/ Calgary Herald

Cowboys prepare for competition behind the shoots at the Hell or High Water Charity Rodeo presented by Qualico Communities at the Millarville Race Track on Saturday.Gavin Young
/ Calgary Herald

Giveaway cowboy hats get ready to fly into the crowd at the Hell or High Water Charity Rodeo presented by Qualico Communities at the Millarville Race Track on Saturday.Gavin Young
/ Calgary Herald

Riders take part in the opening ceremonies at the Hell or High Water Charity Rodeo presented by Qualico Communities at the Millarville Race Track on Saturday.Gavin Young
/ Calgary Herald

MILLARVILLE — When Aaron Ferguson’s stepdad called him on the morning of June 20, the 25-year-old knew just what to do.

“I got on the phone and started rounding up my friends to help with sandbagging,” he says. “A half-hour later, my stepdad called me back and said he was being taken out on a front-loader.”

Although he’s lived in High River since age three, Ferguson, like so many of his fellow citizens, had never seen anything like the great flood of 2013.

“I was in Florida and not being here when it was happening made me feel totally helpless,” says the young bullfighter that has quickly worked his way up to the biggest rodeos in Canada and the United States.

On Saturday afternoon, Ferguson is getting his chance to make amends.

“Being able to offer my talents and skills to help flood victims is just an incredible feeling,” he says as he uses a truck mirror to apply his bullfighter makeup.

“I know what they’re going through — my family lost three houses and five vehicles.”

He’s not the only one here calling upon unique talents for the Hell or High Water Rodeo (hellorhighwaterrodeo.com). The two-day event — which kicked off on Saturday under a bright blue sky — is chock-a-block with people grateful for the opportunity to be a part of an event helping those devastated by the flood.

“I’m just so honoured to be participating in this cause,” Gillian Shields, Miss Rodeo Canada, says just after the opening ceremonies that include fireworks, the Stampede Queen and Princesses and an adorable little cowgirl reciting the Cowboy’s Prayer before a crowd of more than 300 at the Millarville Race Track.

“This is actually my last rodeo on Canadian soil,” says the Didsbury native, who has made more than 500 appearances since taking on her official duties last November. “I head to Australia next week, but this will be one of the more memorable events for me this year. It shows what rodeo people are all about, how we come together to help in times of need.”

It’s not easy to put on a rodeo in only a few weeks’ time, but the good folks who joined forces for the event pulled together everyone from longtime Calgary Stampede volunteers to corporate leaders like Qualico Communities, which opened its show homes in the days after the flood to evacuees.

On this day, a field full of rodeo competitors, stock contractors, food vendors, veterinarians and other support services are here, all of them volunteering their efforts and expertise.

“It’s amazing to see how well it’s been put together,” says Sally Bishop, a third-generation rodeo and Wild West performer, who was added to the day’s roster at the last minute after an appeal from her friend Aaron Ferguson.

For the Okotoks-based Bishop, who on this day is preparing for her wildly popular 4-Horse Roman Riding performance, the timing couldn’t have been better. “I had just got home from a summer on the road, so my stuff was all still in the trailer and my horses weren’t out of shape,” she says.

Like Ferguson, Bishop was stateside when the June flood hit, a disaster that affected several of her friends. “I was watching on TV and I felt so bad I couldn’t be here,” she says. “So I was really happy to join Aaron and all the other competitors today.”

Along with the excitement in the rodeo ring, spectators take in the wares of the Millarville Farmer’s Market going on just on the other side of the viewing stands, as well as some of the local vendors that have set up specially for the rodeo.

Watching people line up to buy her shirts and jeans, Tammy Goldade offers up a smile of relief.

“I’ve spent the summer at rodeos and farmers’ markets, thinking outside of the box,” says Goldade, owner of Walker’s Country ‘n Western Store in High River, one of dozens of businesses left without a home.

“We’ve been getting a lot of support, but there is still so much to do,” she says, noting that on Sept. 27, she and 11 other small business owners will set up a temporary residence in tents set up by Sprung Structures.

The rodeo spectators, many wearing “Alberta Tough 2013” T-shirts courtesy of the Calgary Police Rodeo and those now-famous Calgary Stampede “Hell or Water” T-shirts, offer up similar sentiments.

“It’s not over, people still need our support,” says James Kalman, who made the drive down from the city with his wife Lorraine. Kalman, a year-round Calgary Stampede volunteer, says he helped out post-flood in Calgary, High River and Siksika First Nation.

Coming to a rodeo on a beautiful weekend afternoon, he says, is a win-win for everyone.

“I can’t think of a better thing to do on the last weekend of summer,” says the Calgary realtor with a smile.

“You put on a rodeo and there’s no way I’m staying home.”

vfortney@calgaryheral.com

Twitter.com/ValFortney

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